Hawkes Double Bass Restoration

This restoration project was a Double Bass which had spent much of its life in Netherne Mental Hospital in Hooley, Surrey. It was used there in the 1920s and 30s in the hospital orchestra. After one session this Hawkes Double Bass was left out and subsequently attacked by a paranoid schizophrenic patient.

The instrument was taken to the hospital wood workshop, where it was crudely repaired by patching with veneer using glue and screws, and covering with a thick treacle varnish.

A full restoration was carried out to bring the instrument back to its former glory, complete with the original Hawkes bridge that had miraculously survived!

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